Stellantis stops production of the Fiat 500e - sales are low

The crisis in the electric car market across Europe forces the group to a four-week shutdown at Mirafiori

Fiat Mirafiori: where the electric 500 was born

By: Riccardo Ciriaco

Published by: Brian Potter

Sep 13, 2024 at 3:50am ET

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Stellantis is shutting down production of the Fiat 500e, the electric version of the iconic Italian city car, for at least four weeks from 13 September to 11 October. It is the Italian-French group itself that communicated the painful decision in a note.

"The measure is made necessary by the current lack of orders linked to the performance of the electricity market in Europe, which is deeply troubled for all manufacturers, especially European ones," writes the company, which promises to "work hard to better manage and navigate this difficult phase of the transition".

What is happening at Mirafiori

In fact, the Fiat 500e, which was born in the historic factory in Mirafiori (Turin), sold only 69 units in Italy last August, for a total of 1,689 units since the beginning of the year. The facility is undergoing 'a profound transformation, with the aim of making it a true global centre of innovation and development, a crucial choice for winning the challenge of the transition to sustainable mobility to which we are called'.

Fiat Mirafiori: where the electric 500 was born

Mirafiori: where the Fiat 500e was born

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The Fiat brand thus joins the list of manufacturers forced to backtrack on the electric car. One of the first was the American General Motors, followed by fellow countryman Ford (which no longer intends to sell exclusively full electric cars in Europe from 2030) and other competitors, most recently Hyundai and Volvo (to date). However, Stellantis tries to reassure:

"As far as the Mirafiori Coachworks is concerned, thanks to an investment of 100 million euros, production of the Fiat 500e will soon be boosted with a new high-power battery, integrating new technologies to make it more accessible and improve the customer experience, but between 2025 and 2026 production of the New 500 Hybrid will also be started, which will be built on the basis of the current electric 500."